STUDENTS from South East Cornwall have been helping launch one of the West Country’s biggest foodie events.

Professional cookery and hospitality students from Cornwall College Saltash provided service front and back of house at the launch event for Plymouth’s Flavour Fest 2018.

The launch night of fine dining at Ocean Studios was held to promote this year’s Flavour Fest from June 1 to 3.

The Saltash students worked with top Plymouth chefs James and Chris Tanner at the event.

Former Looe Community Academy student, Jade Davey, who is studying level 2 professional cookery, said at first he was ‘really nervous to be working at such a big event, but it was fantastic’.

 He said: ‘Working alongside the Tanner Brothers was really interesting, I felt I was able to communicate well with them and it’s really boosted my confidence.’

Steve Hughes, is chief executive of the Plymouth City Centre Company, which organises Flavour Fest. He said the students from Saltash ‘did a really fantastic job helping us to launch this year’s festival in style with some delicious dishes’.

Chris Penk of Cornwall College Saltash said the launch was a high-profile event that ‘allowed our students to showcase their professionalism to a wider audience’.

‘We are now looking forward to supporting at the main event in June which is another great experience for our students,’ he said.